Rebecca Black has lived the majority of her life online.

Her name is one that’s hardly escaped the internet’s consciousness since she was 13 — or since she released her 2011 music video for “Friday,” which instantly went viral and became a YouTube classic. Since embarking on this extremely public path of self-discovery, she’s dabbled in acoustic covers, radio-friendly EDM remixes and alternative ballads in search of a sound that sticks.

Now, the 27-year-old says she’s landed that perfect sound on her self-released seven-song project, “Salvation” — a brazen approach to the ever-morphing hyperpop genre.

“Something has been trying to come out of me for a long time now,” says Black. “Over all these years, I just kept hitting a point of burnout and losing myself over and over again. But with [‘Salvation’] I really started to confront and redefine the way I look at myself. I started allowing myself some freedom.”

On an unexpectedly warm December afternoon, I spot Black from across Silver Lake’s Sunset Boulevard. Seated along the sidewalk outside Cafe Tropical, the singer, dressed in dark-wash denim and kitten heels, orders a Diet Coke and a trio of the Cuban cafe’s signature pastelitos. She jokes about being hungover and starts to tell me about how protective she’s become of “Salvation.” Set to release a little over a year after her debut album, “Let Her Burn,” she admits she’s been itching to share these new tracks for quite some time.

“It’s weird because I know this [record] exists and nobody else does. I poured so much into it, and that feels very safe,” says Black. “At the same time, you start to realize I’ve grown and developed artistically, but people haven’t seen it yet. But now that a few singles are out, it’s so special to see people connect the most they ever have at this point in my career.”

Last October, Black shared her first single, “Trust!” — a hard-hitting, techno-driven club anthem. Powered by a steady electric guitar riff, the singer recounts a sexual encounter over a buzzing dance beat. In its accompanying video, Black brings a sense of campy glamour to the courthouse. The singer arrives with her face covered in gauze, a bedazzled ankle monitor and clear lucite heels before breaking into a full dance sequence in front of the judge.

Since its release, “Trust!” has become one of her most popular tracks on Spotify, counting more than 3 million streams. The track was followed by the single “Sugar Water Cyanide,” a distorted take on Y2K bubblegum pop, which came out in December.

Black credits a cultural shift to the recent appreciation of her maximalist pop sound. At first, she was unsure if her listeners would get it, but with the mainstream rise of artists like Charli XCX and Chappell Roan, she says she felt like her audience was ready for the new sound. As XCX made club pop cool again and Roan brought queer romance to pop’s forefront, Black emphasizes the importance of making a statement — especially in a genre that’s often dismissed as overly flashy and superficial.

“Pop is the best when it’s at its most revealing. It creates a more dynamic song rather than being, like, we’re in the club and we’re talking about being in the club — which is fun — but if there’s something in there that people connect to, it makes the song so much better,” says Black. “All my favorite dance songs are ones that also are deeply depressing.”

She cites songs like FKA Twigs’ ”Tears in the Club” and a majority of Lana Del Rey’s discography for having “this powerful yet heartbreaking energy.”

“Salvation” offers a similar mix of melancholic, empowering and sensual lyricism. Though no matter its lyrical content, the project’s cohesive nature stems from the fact that every track is a dance anthem of sorts. On the title track, Black sings “I don’t need you to save me / I already saved myself” over a dreamy synth soundscape, while on “Do You Even Think About Me?” she details the aftermath of a heartbreak as a choppy, electronic drop takes center stage.

“I was letting go of the idea that I needed to be perfect and polite so that people would like me or I would be successful. All of these things were actually starting to hinder me,” says Black. “Honestly, the reason this project has been so therapeutic is because I’ve finally allowed myself to embrace not being so afraid of everything all the time.”

As she enters her late 20s, the musician says having some hindsight on her adolescence is what allowed her to break through these barriers. In 2011, when Black joined forces with music production company Ark Music Factory to create “Friday,” she didn’t think much of it. To her, it was a small side project that would look good on a college application.

(Sarahi Apaez/For De Los)

But as the 13-year-old became the subject of overnight fame, with one of YouTube’s first viral sensations — garnering 174 million views and at one point having the most-disliked video with 1.17 million thumbs down — her life changed rapidly. Being the subject of constant internet bullying and death threats, the accidental virality made her into a rather “scared, apprehensive and paranoid” person. However, her dreams of being a performer never faltered.

“Post-‘Friday,’ I just wanted to be accepted and liked. I didn’t wanna cause problems. I put so much pressure on being a version of myself I thought people wanted,” says Black. “Then it started to bleed into my life and my relationships. I wondered why I hated everyone, hated myself or why I was always disappointed when I would make a decision. Sometimes I would make a song and then a year later I would hate it.”

Over the years, the internet has seen Black transform from a viral meme and a cameo in Katy Perry’s “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F)” video to a Boiler Room DJ and queer pop star. Her mark on pop culture is undeniable, and with “Salvation” her sense of self is stronger than ever.

“For a long time, I had no idea what I was gonna make. That was my biggest thing for so long. It was like, ‘Who the f— am I? What is my sound? What is it supposed to be like?’“ says Black. “And now it all makes sense.”

The third installment of the business conference NOW PLAYING JAPAN, organized by Billboard JAPAN and Luminate, was held on Feb. 6 at Billboard Live Tokyo.

At this event, executives from Billboard JAPAN and Luminate gave presentations on the latest domestic and international trends in music consumption. Additionally, Tatsuya Nomura, Chairman of the MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN Executive Committee, and Yutaka Inaba, Vice Chairman, appeared as guest speakers to discuss MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN, which will be held in May 2025. They focused on Japan’s music market and explained the efforts being made to help domestic artists succeed on the global stage. 

Scott Ryan, Executive Vice President of Luminate, took the podium first to discuss global trends for 2024, including streaming growth, genre trends, and audience insights, using Luminate’s “2024 Year End Report.” In 2024, global on-demand audio streaming grew 14% over the previous year to reach 4.8 trillion streams, which represents an increase of approximately 75% from 2.7 trillion streams in 2022. While 30% of this streaming volume is from the U.S., the growth rate from 2023 to 2024 for countries outside of the U.S. was 17.3%, indicating that the streaming market is growing on a global scale. He also explained that when focusing on Japan, the total number of streaming users (including both premium and ad-supported) grew by about 13%, and the number of premium users grew by more than 10%.

In addition, Ryan introduced a new metric developed by Luminate, the “Luminate Export Power Score.” This metric is designed to evaluate a country’s ability to export recorded music globally, and is comprised of four data points. The U.S. is ranked first in this metric, with its top importers being Canada, Australia, and New Zealand; Brazil ranks 10th, with Portugal, Bolivia, and Peru being the top importers. Japan ranks 14th in this metric. Ryan also noted the country of origin for artists as a point of interest, and revealed that English speaking markets losing share to imports is becoming a new trend. Meanwhile in non-English-speaking markets, domestically produced works are gaining market share over imports from English-speaking countries (Japan also falls into this category).

Ryan also mentioned that Luminate, now with data enrichment services, has begun to access songwriting works data, and can now share at a broader scale, more information about how songwriters are driving cultural exchange and activity. By taking the top 1,000 global on-demand audio songs and then analyze them using data enrichment services from the team formerly known as Quansic, Luminate can now identify the top songwriters. The top global songwriter was Taylor Swift followed by Max Martin and The Weeknd.

Looking at regional and market based trends, the amount of J-Pop streams outside of Japan was mentioned as a notable trend. The number of premium users is also growing globally, with Asia, Europe, and Latin America showing the largest growth in 2024 from the previous year. While Latin America has been the fastest growing region overall since 2021, when focusing on 2024, Asia and Europe are showing a more rapid growth compared to other regions.

Ryan concluded by listing four key points: “Streaming in Japan and globally continues to grow at double-digit percentages, faster than in Western mature developed markets,” “Share of local content is increasing in Japan and many non-English speaking countries, and declining in English speaking markets like the U.S., UK and Canada,” ”Quansic Music Enrichment and Matching Services now provide new visibility on Songwriter and Recording activity” and ”New Audience Insights information will be coming soon for Japan and other top global music markets, enabling strategic planning.”

Next, Tatsuya Nomura, Chairman of the MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN Executive Committee, and Yutaka Inaba, Vice Chairman, took the stage for a discussion on the theme “The Meaning of Hosting an Awards Show in Japan Today.” Billboard JAPAN’s Naoko Takashima served as moderator.

The inaugural MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN will be held on May 21 and 22, 2025, in Kyoto, with an awards ceremony and performances. The May 22 event will be broadcast on NHK, including some BTS coverage, and will also be available worldwide on YouTube with a delayed stream. Unlike traditional Japanese music awards, MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN has been designed with a global perspective. One of the key reasons for establishing this award was the shift in Japan’s music industry from a CD-centric model to streaming, a transition accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which highlighted the growing international reach of Japanese music.

Nomura and Inaba emphasized that Japan lacked a transparent, democratically structured awards show akin to the Grammy Awards. Nomura explained, “In the U.S., the Grammy Awards recognize the best music of the year, and I thought Japan needed something similar. While Japan has various awards, they often lack transparency and industry participation. We wanted to create an opportunity where people could participate democratically, engage thoughtfully, and vote with genuine interest.” Inaba added, “This award is managed jointly by five major music industry organizations, meaning it exists for the benefit of the industry rather than any single entity. If any revenue is generated, it will be reinvested into Japan’s music industry. Many companies have resonated with this vision and have chosen to support us as partners. The more people take an interest in music, the more it will enrich and revitalize various aspects of society.”

MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN will have six major categories in addition to more than 60 other award categories. The primary selection of nominated artists will be based on Billboard JAPAN’s charts, utilizing publicly available data to ensure an objective and quantitative perspective that fairly captures listener response. Following this, over 5,000 music industry professionals will vote to determine the winners. The voting criteria will shift from quantitative analysis to a qualitative approach, evaluating artists based on their creativity and artistic excellence. Inaba noted, “Even if we narrow down the top five artists based on chart performance, industry professionals might have different opinions regarding who is truly the most outstanding artist, regardless of general fan popularity. We want to encourage deeper discussions about music.”

Nomura also revealed some of the challenges involved, stating, “The more we ensure transparency in the selection process, the more difficult the artist bookings become.” Beyond the awards themselves, the committee announced plans to support the global and digital expansion of Japanese music throughout the year by organizing showcase live performances worldwide. Already scheduled for March is a showcase event within SXSW, which is expected to continue annually, as well as “matsuri ’25: Japanese Music Experience LOS ANGELES” at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, featuring Ado, ATARASHII GAKKO!, and YOASOBI. Moving forward, the committee aims to create more opportunities for artists to engage with local J-Pop fans not only in the U.S. but also across Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Additionally, to support the industry beyond live performances and artist activities, a training program for music industry professionals is set to launch in the spring.

Seiji Isozaki from Billboard JAPAN delivered the final presentation under the theme “Reflections on Providing Global Data.” 

Isozaki outlined the various services currently offered by Billboard JAPAN, including the “Global Japan Songs excl. Japan” chart, the “Chart Insight Global” data analysis service, and Luminate’s CONNECT service for corporate clients, highlighting their respective benefits. While acknowledging that some companies hesitate due to the high cost of these services, Isozaki pointed out that relying on inexpensive peripheral data often leads to mere “predictions,” which can ultimately put companies at a disadvantage. Isozaki then emphasized the advantages of utilizing accurate data to make informed decisions. He also reiterated the importance of enhancing music and artist identifiers, a topic that had been raised at the previous convention in September. Currently, tens of millions of songs by millions of artists, including their derivative versions, are being streamed across hundreds of platforms in dozens of languages. He expressed concerns that this explosive growth in content has led to lost opportunities and revenue overseas. Isozaki emphasized that improving metadata accuracy can help increase revenue, warning that using lower-cost alternative services with limited coverage rates would require working with multiple providers, ultimately leading to higher costs. He urged consideration of updating metadata through Luminate, which would allow for higher matching accuracy.

Isozaki also discussed the potential impact of MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN, presenting comparative data on streaming trends before and after the broadcast of multiple songs during the 2024 year-end NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen. The graphs showed a significant increase in streaming numbers for all featured songs following the broadcast. He explained that MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN, like Kouhaku, has the potential to become an internationally recognized program that influences audiences both in Japan and globally. He also reaffirmed Billboard JAPAN’s commitment to fully supporting the initiative and closely monitoring its impact.

—This article by Haruki Saito and Maiko Murata first appeared on Billboard Japan